Last week, Denzel Washington took a plea deal after strangling his mother, identified as Aretha Franklin, in an altercation that occurred in a Manhattan apartment building.
But it’s not what you think.
The Washington in question isn’t the beloved Hollywood legend and Magnificent Seven star, but a 20-year-old New York City man who was sentenced to a conditional discharge and anger management after copping an plea to harassment as a violation, the New York Post reports.
According to the Post:
“I am informed by Aretha Franklin,” the complaint says, “that she observed the defendant place his hands around her neck and apply pressure, thereby causing redness, bruising and substantial pain to her neck.”
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The altercation reportedly began after Franklin refused to give her son money for a date.
The attack on his 52-year-old mother isn’t the first time Washington has been in trouble. The Post notes that the young man also has another case open for trespassing at his mother’s West 93rd Street apartment building.
Neither mother or son bear relation to the Queen of Soul or the movie star, but the coincidence has the internet buzzing — according to Oregon Live, Denzel Washington and Aretha Franklin are actually close friends.